2026-07-15

Teaching my regular classes at the Ross Farnsworth - East Valley YMCA.

One of the most common mistakes I see when teaching mae geri keage (front snap kick) is the position of the ankle at impact. Many students keep the ankle dorsiflexed, with the toes still pulled toward the shin, rather than extending the ankle while keeping the toes pulled back.

This mistake causes the ball of the foot to point upward at impact instead of into the target. The metatarsals, which support the ball of the foot, are no longer aligned with the driving force, which changes everything about the mechanics of the kick.

The feeling should be that you’re “stabbing” the target with the underside of the ball of the foot. Keeping the ankle dorsiflexed makes you much more likely to “pat” the target with the bottom of your foot or glance off and slide upward on contact, producing very little impact.

Practicing kicks in the air (without hitting anything) allows this mistake to go unnoticed. If you regularly kick a makiwara, heavy bag, or training partner, you’ll quickly discover that leaving the ankle dorsiflexed simply doesn’t work. So how do you fix it?

Here’s the drill I use.

Have students rest one hand on a wall, chair, or other stable object for balance. This allows them to focus entirely on the motion of the kicking leg without worrying about falling over.

Then have them perform front snap kicks in slow motion. Lift the knee, slowly extend the leg while the ankle extends at the same time, then reverse the entire motion just as slowly. The knee and ankle should not be thought of as separate movements. They should work together throughout the technique.

If students can practice this near a wall and make light contact at the end of the kick, with the ankle extended and the toes pulled back, even better. Moving slowly is the key to learning the coordination. Nothing good comes from adding speed to bad technique. Concentrate on keeping the sole of the foot parallel to the floor at all times.

If students have trouble with this, have them use a light chair on a hard floor so it can slide easily. Have the student lift the knee and place the sole of the foot on the seat of the chair. Then slowly extend the leg while keeping the sole of the foot in continuous contact with the chair. As the chair slides away, students naturally learn to coordinate knee extension with ankle extension. If the ankle remains dorsiflexed, they immediately feel that something isn’t working correctly.

Once you learn to coordinate ankle extension with knee extension while keeping the toes pulled back, your front snap kick becomes noticeably sharper and more effective. Instead of feeling like you’re pushing the target with your foot, it feels like you’re driving the ball of the foot straight through it.